Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Shetland will be in my heart forever

Here's my final Shetland post, and it's a long one! There would be so much more for me to say, but I fear I would still be posting about this trip several months from now, especially given how slow I can be to blog sometimes. As hard as it is to leave this beautiful place, I do have other things I want to show you. So, here are the final trip highlights.

On a glorious day we traveled by ferry to Unst, Britain's northernmost inhabited isle.

View of Unst from the ferry










The most picturesque day in Unst



There we visited the Unst Heritage Centre, which houses a stunning Shetland lace collection (sadly, photos were not allowed). We also drove up to the Hermaness National Nature Reserve. Overlooking Muckle Flugga, Britain's most northerly point, the reserve is a sanctuary for thousands of seabirds.






After about an hour's hike through beautiful grassy moorland, we were treated the most stunning views of the ocean. The breathtaking cliffs are home an array of nesting seabirds including fulmars, gulls, shags, gannets, puffins and kittiwakes. Other notable inhabitants are enumerable sheep braving the perilous drops.




An unusually tame Bonxie



Hiking in full-on Fair-Isle regalia. Such fun to wear so many woolens in summer!









Surefooted sheep!



Baaaaa!










Very noisy and smelly gannet colony







Perfect weather for a picnic!


Now to the best part of the trip. Getting to know the lovely women who signed up for this trip of a lifetime was the highlight of my Shetland adventure.  


Me, Kathy and Lori



Susan, Claire, Anne, Kathryn and Alice



Me and Kathryn



Kathy, Claire, Pat and Lori



Kathy and Claire



Pat and I



Mary-Jane and lovely expert knitter (sorry I don't know her name) at the Shetland Textile Museum


We just had SO much fun together! Chatting and laughing while we criss-crossed the islands in our mini-bus, sharing all those incredible meals at Burrastow, learning together from some of Shetland's most talented craftspeople, hanging out late at night with our knitting and our life stories, marveling together at our immense luck to be in such a beautiful place, with such wonderful company... It was overwhelming and life-changing.  I will never forget the wonderful time we had together!


Me, Kathryn, Gudrun, Lori and Claire. We're showing off our Bressays. Photo courtesy of Alice Stern.



Paula, Linnea, Susan, myself, Liz getting a master class from Hazel Tindal. Photo courtesy of Alice Stern.



The lucky trip people, on our way to one of the happiest places on Earth! Photo courtesy of Lori Graham






Cheers Shetland, it was unforgettable. I cannot wait to go back!


13 comments:








Lori ann

said...

dearest nicole,

i love this post most of all. i feel so much emotion, like you and i think for all of us, it was life changing. how i wish we will reunite someday back on that island that is now permanently in our hearts.
and can i just say you are the most photogenic and beautiful lass! i miss you! xxx





Savannagal

said...

The landscape is stunning. Thank you for sharing your experience. I would love to take this trip some day.





Sonia / COZY MEMORIES

said...

Aaaah so much love, so much joy, so much beauty & so much happiness in one single post ! I'm so glad you got to make this trip ! My trip to Canada was just like this. <3 And I miss all the friends I've met there, you included !
Big hugs xoxo





Margie Oomen

said...

i agree with lori ann you are so beautiful especially in fair-isle hand knits





Hazel

said...

I enjoyed reading this! Always interesting to read what visitors have to say. The exper knitter at Shetland Textile Museum is Pearl Johnson whose Fair Isle work I very much admire.





Véronique L.

said...

Fantastic pull jacquart. It's seems knitting been happy.

Sorry, for mistakes, i'm french.

"il semblerait que le tricot rende heureux !!!"

Have a good day !

véronique L.





Jean E Miller

said...

HELLO -- I AM NEW TO THE SITE. I CAME ACROSS YOUR PATTERN FOR A SCARF MADE OF MALABRIGO WORSTED YARN. I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF THIS TYPE. CAN YOU GIVE ME THE NAME OF ANOTHER YARN? THANK YOU JEAN MILLER MY EMAIL ADDRESS IS FIRESTORM4625@YAHOO.COM





Taci simmons

said...

Wow I have been following your adventure through Lori's eyes ( in her blog of course). I feel so blessed that I found her and all of you ladies' blog. I absolutely loved all your pictures and each one of your views of the trip. It's almost like you were all born to do this trip together. So inspiring that my goal is to go to one of those troops someday after I retire... A beautiful dream!
Thanks for the inspiration!





Taci simmons

said...

Wow I have been following your adventure through Lori's eyes ( in her blog of course). I feel so blessed that I found her and all of you ladies' blog. I absolutely loved all your pictures and each one of your views of the trip. It's almost like you were all born to do this trip together. So inspiring that my goal is to go to one of those troops someday after I retire... A beautiful dream!
Thanks for the inspiration!





www.essayhelp24.com

said...

It's really so pleasant to see how you are connected with your friends and how wonderful you look together. I also like to spend time with my close friends and relatives. We don't indulge into adventures much like you do, but it seems to me that we really have a good company. Good luck to you! Regards, Julie Freskot





Unknown

said...

Beautiful scenery!

Thanks for sharing ;-)

~Val





harada57

said...

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Anonymous

said...

أحد أهم أسباب أهمية شركات تركيب شبكات ومضخات الحريق هو أنها تساعد في حماية الأرواح والممتلكات. تصميم الشبكات والمضخات بشكل صحيح وتركيبها بطريقة فعالة يسمح بالكشف المبكر عن الحرائق وتأمين وصول المياه أو وسائل الإطفاء الأخرى بسرعة إلى منطقة الحريق. وهذا يساعد في تقليل فرص انتشار الحريق والحد من التدمير الناجم عنه.